By James H. Hyde

According to the Burlington Free Press and Associated Press reporter Steve LeBlanc, Vermont and New York states are working together to bring back the muskellunge for sport fishing.

Muskellunge had all but disappeared from the Missisquoi River and Lake Champlain during the 1970s, but both states are determined to help the fish make a big comeback. They recently began stocking the Missisquoi with 250, four-month old muskellunge in northwestern Vermont.

The New York State Department of Environmental Conservation came up with the fish and donated them for the comeback project.

Interestingly, Lake Champlain and the Missisquoi are the only two bodies of water in New England in which there existed populations of native muskellunge. Those caught recently gave hope to the environmental departments of both states that there were still some native muskellunge in the river or lake. But scientists discovered that they came from the New York strain.

Nonetheless, there’s still hope among conservationists that some of the indigenous fish are still in their native waters.

Whether or not the old-strain fish are found, the new one gives anglers a real thrill as sport fish, and those who fish in Vermont should be pleased to know that the species is back. They’ll make for great fish tales, if not a fun catch.

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